She topped the Billboard chart before she turned 19, then spent six decades on television. Nine roles that tell the whole story.
Fabares died in Los Angeles at 82 after a brief illness, her family said. No cause has been released. She had been acting since she was three years old.
Born Michele Ann Marie Fabares in Santa Monica in January 1944, she was the niece of Broadway and TV star Nanette Fabray. Her first TV role came at 10.
From 1958 she played Mary Stone on The Donna Reed Show, the eldest daughter of America's most-watched sitcom family, staying with the series until 1965.
She sang "Johnny Angel" on the show in 1962; it hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 that April. "Johnny Loves Me" followed, peaking at No. 21.
She was Elvis Presley's most frequent leading lady, the only actress to headline three of his films: Girl Happy in 1965, Spinout in 1966 and Clambake in 1967.
In 1971 she played Joy Piccolo opposite James Caan in Brian's Song, the TV movie about a dying Chicago Bears player that made grown men admit to crying.
From 1978 to 1984 she was Francine Webster on One Day at a Time, the sharp-elbowed colleague who started as a rival and became part of the furniture.
As Christine Armstrong on Coach from 1989 to 1997, she earned back-to-back Emmy nominations in 1993 and 1994 for supporting actress in a comedy.
Her last long-running role was a voice: Martha Kent in Superman: The Animated Series and Justice League. She signed off with Brainiac Attacks in 2006.
She married M*A*S*H star Mike Farrell in 1984 and stayed with him for 42 years. After a 2000 liver transplant she campaigned on organ donation and Alzheimer's.